Tuesday, April 20, 2010

South Bend Silver Hawks 7, Bowling Green Hot Rods 1

South Bend, IN – Hot Rods outfielder Dustin Biell continued to enjoy his first road trip through Michigan and Indiana, blasting his first home run of the season on Tuesday night. The solo shot, however, was not enough as the Hot Rods couldn’t take advantage of some early opportunities in a 7-1 loss to South Bend (3-10). The loss is the Hot Rods fifth straight, dropping them into a tie with the Silver Hawks with identical 3-10 marks.

Biell’s home run came in a 3-0 ball game in the top of the eighth inning. With two outs, he hit a rocket over everything in right field for his first homer in a Hot Rods uniform. He finished the night 1-4 and is now 4-12 with an RBI in three straight games on the Hot Rods road trip.

The Silver Hawks built that 3-0 lead with a solo home run of their own off the bat of shortstop Chris Owings in the third inning. Owings’ followed up the home run with a line drive single in the fifth to pick up another run for the Silver Hawks against starter Shane Dyer.

Dyer ended up working six innings for Bowling Green, giving up one final unearned run on a stolen base compounded by two errors in his final frame. The right-hander took the loss but allowed just two earned runs on five hits. He struck out a season-high eight without issuing a free pass.

He was bested by South Bend righty Eric Smith (1-1), who worked six shutout frames for his first win of the season. The right-hander put Hot Rods in scoring position in three of his six frames, but was able to keep the Hot Rods off the board during that time. He gave up five hits, struck out four, and did not issue a walk.

After Biell’s home run, the Silver Hawks bloated their lead with a four-run eighth against Alex Koronis. With one out they strung together five consecutive hits, including three doubles and a two-run triple from second baseman Victor Estevez.

The Hot Rods now turn to starter Wilking Rodriguez (0-0, 4.09) for the middle game of the series on Wednesday night. He’s coming off a six-inning, nine-strikeout no-decision at Bowling Green Ballpark last Friday night. He’ll face RHP Chase Anderson (0-2, 4.50). First pitch is at 5:30 PM CDT. You can follow the action with Tom Gauthier beginning at 5:15 PM CDT on 1340 WBGN and www.bghotrods.com.

The Hot Rods return home to begin a six-game home stand on Friday, April 23, against the Lake County Captains (Cleveland Indians). First pitch on April 23 is at 7:05 PM. Stay with us for post-game fireworks presented by Kentucky Lottery. The first 1,000 fans 18 & older will receive a special offer from Kentucky Lottery when they enter the gates. For tickets, call 270.901.2121 or visit www.bghotrods.com.